The Media School

Evidence Interactive

4 November 2010

Lorenza Samuels, Poole Literary Festival winner

Bournemouth University (BU) student's unique interactive detective story wins New Media Writing Award at Poole Literary Festival

MA Radio Production student, Lorenza Samuels, has scooped the Student New Media Writing Award at the Poole Literary Festival for her outstanding creation 'Evidence Interactive'.

The online project, which Lorenza produced and directed, allows the audience to assess evidence relating to a young girl's disappearance by listening to voicemail messages, reading emails and viewing photos on a virtual digital camera.

Lorenza said: "Hopefully Evidence Interactive is seen as a story with added extras. You can choose how the story plays out, email your endings to the tale and listen to various scenes whilst exploring the site. Or simply just listen to the radio piece and decide the outcome for yourself."

Evidence Interactive was created by Lorenza and a team of other BU students for the Cross-Platforms project within the MA Radio Production.

She continued: "I feel theatre, storytelling and poetry should always have the audience partaking, asking questions and feeling connected with the piece. I believe new media allows this process to work brilliantly."

Lorenza received £250 and an iPad for the entry at the Poole Literary Festival award ceremony held at the Lighthouse on Sunday evening. It is the first year they have held a New Media Writing category, which is sponsored by BU.

"I feel we are in a new media and interactive world these days," said Lorenza. "Everyone seems to be hooked up to Facebook, Twitter, iTunes and the likes and we don't seem to just simply use radio as something on in the background. Radio is much more an interactive medium."

She concluded: "I'm so grateful to Sean Street and Jo Tyler from BU, for their encouragement and help as I worked on Evidence Interactive for my MA project. I'm overwhelmed that it won the prize; there were some fantastic pieces and beautiful work so I'm shocked but incredibly proud. I'm also inspired to continue working in this field bridging the gap between radio and interactive new media."

Lorenza completed her MA in September of this year and graduates with Merit at the Bournemouth International Centre this week.

Lorenza would like to thank the writer, Christiana Brockbank and Bridget Pettifer who helped with the website.